Hamas denied Sunday accusations made by the Egyptian army's spokesman who said hand grenades bearing the stamp of the Palestinian Islamist group's military wing were found in Sinai. In a statement published on the information office website of the Islamic resistance movement, the group described the claims as "lies and fabrications." Earlier Sunday, the army's spokesman, Colonel Ahmed Ali, said that the military confiscated a number of munitions, including hand grenades bearing the stamp of the Ezzeddin Al-Qassam Brigades, Hamas's military arm. He also said in a press conference there was "cooperation between armed and terrorist organisations and their counterpart in the Gaza Strip." The armed forces have launched a large-scale operation against militant groups who have stepped up their attacks against security forces in the northern Sinai Peninsula since Islamist president Mohamed Morsi was ousted by the military 3 July. Since then, Egypt has repeatedly accused Hamas, an ideological off-shoot of the Muslim Brotherhood, of interfering in its internal affairs to support Morsi and his Muslim Brotherhood. In his press conference, Colonel Ali also said there will be more military operations against "terrorist" strongholds in Sinai until the region is completely free of "factions threatening national security." Source : Ahram
